Saturday, January 27, 2018

Protect the special counsel's investigation. U.S. SENATOR CORY BOOKER.

David,

Late Thursday night, news broke that back in June, President Trump attempted to fire special counsel Robert Mueller but was stopped when the White House Counsel threatened to resign.

This is an alarming revelation that fits into a months-long pattern of behavior from President Trump, his surrogates, and his allies in Congress, who have been relentlessly working to discredit and undermine the credibility of the special counsel and his investigation.

Last August, I introduced bipartisan legislation—the Special Counsel Independence Protection Act—to check and balance the president’s ability to order the firing of a special counsel for anything but legitimate reasons.

The legislation was urgently needed then, and clearly it’s even more urgently needed now.

But despite bipartisan support for our effort, Republican leaders in Congress are refusing to allow our bill to move forward to the floor for a vote.

Clearly, it would be wrong of President Trump to order the firing of Special Counsel Mueller. To do so would shatter norms — and trigger a constitutional crisis.

No one is above the law, and that includes the President of the United States.

A special counsel should follow the facts wherever they might lead, free from prejudice, and free from political interference.

That’s why we need the basic checks and balances outlined in the Special Counsel Independence Protection Act.